The Tigers, Phillies and Blue Jays have also reportedly shown interest in Gonzalez.

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Matthew Cerrone: This is odd. I mean, the Mets have been talking to other teams about trading away Jon Niese. So, it seems strange that they’d also be in on trying to acquire Gonzalez, who, from what I understand, has had at least 12 teams check in on him. Despite throwing 200 innings with at least 170 strike outs in each of his last two seasons, Gonzalez doesn’t strike me as someone that Sandy Alderson would be looking to bring on because a) he also led the league in walks, b) he has said he doesn’t want to trade away his prospects yet, and c) Gonzlaez is arbitration eligible each of the next four seasons.

My hunch is that Rosenthal heard the Mets name either because of their previous interest in Andrew Bailey, or perhaps they’re part of some sort of three-way deal.

I’ve heard from more than one person that the Mets have had substantive talks about Niese with the Jays, who have also been mentioned repeatedly in rumors involving Gonzalez. The people I’ve talked with say the Mets like Jays C Travis d’Arnaud, as do many other teams. Also, the word in baseball has been that Billy Beane is looking for the type of prospects that most teams refuse to include in a deal for Gonzalez, like Marlins OF Mike Stanton. So, perhaps the Mets and A’s are considering something creative involving their two, young left-handed starting pitchers?